Sundays with Sam is a combination of Sunday Post hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer and Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews.
My Week in Review
Happy Sunday! We are battening down the hatches here in the northeast because winter isn't done with us. I am under a coastal flooding warning, a winter storm warning, and a blizzard warning. They are saying 12 - 20 inches, so let's hope they are wrong. I just want to know why we have only had these storms on weekends with them bleeding into Monday. It really wrecks my schedule because I like to do my in-office time on Mondays. I am off Thursday, so I will most likely need to go in on Friday unless the campus is closed. *Crossing fingers they close the office*
I actually did stuff last week when my daughter was here. I came up short on my reading, but we had some fun. Last Sunday, we went into the city. We went to a place called Sveta for brunch. We shared vereniki, chicken and waffles, and syrniki. Everything was delicious. Then, we headed to Molly's to share a creme brûlée cupcake. Molly's is a Chicago chain which expanded to NYC. It's been a while since I have had the pleasure. After, we headed uptown and saw Just In Time which was fabulous. The show is in the basement of Wicked, a very small theatre, and I loved the intimacy. It was the music of Bobby Darrin which I know from my parents. His story was interesting and a little sad. I enjoyed it.
Monday, I had off from work for the holiday. We went to Benihana for dinner. My daughter loves it, and the food is good, but it's kind of pricy and big time commitment. It's been years since I have been, so it was fun for a change. My daughter left on Wednesday, *cue tears*, but she is coming back next month. It won't be long until I see her again.
On the Blog
Punch has been causing me heartache all week. This was a saga for sure.
Stacking the Shelves
I have not been requesting many books this year. Most of my ARCs are invites or auto-approvals. I was in tears when I got the approval for the new CLo book. I adore their books, but I have not been able to get approved in a long time. This was a big surprise. I was thrilled to be invited for the new Lavine book, too. I love her debut. My experiences with Ward are great as well. I clicked a lot of freebies. They looked fun and cute, and I need more of that.
Netgalley/Edelweiss
- The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren
- Your Soulmail Is Attached by Joan F. Smith
Invites
- For the Bride by Becca Grischow
- Not That Kind of Proposal by Victoria Lavine
- Bad Words by Rioghnach Robinson
- Arrivals and Departures by Amanda Eyre Ward
Purchased/Free
- The Life That Mattered by Jewel E. Ann
- Key Ridge by Allison Speka
- The Foster Wife by Cindy Dorminy
- Late Tackle by Bree Kraemer
- Puck Happens by Hailey Shore
- Since We're Here by Chrissy Hopewell
Read Last Week
I adored Shaffer's debut. Her follow up was good, but not as great as The Wishing Game, but she is back in full force with The Book Witch. I mean seriously, a magical coven of witches who are tasked with protecting books and stories. They can jump into the books and be part of the world temporary which is the stuff of dreams, but the bigger them is all book love and the power of books. The story took so many twists and turns, and I loved them all. So good!
Find all my reviews on Goodreads
Books
- The Heir Apparent by Rebecca Armitage - ★★★★ 1/2
- Love Songs and Ferry Tales by Julie Farley - ★★★★
- The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer - ★★★★★
Audiobooks
Currently Reading
- Pomona Afton Can Totally Catch a Killer by Bellamy Rose
- The Hotshot by Piper Rayne
To Be Read
- Meet the Newmans by Jennifer Niven
- Holly Jolly Rebel by Kate Meader
- The Name Game by Beth O'Leary
Let us know in the comments!
I can see that you had a blast with your daughter Sam!
ReplyDeleteAlways fun to see her but even nicer that we actually did something together.
DeleteWe got snow last Thursday and it has yet to melt so I guess winter isn't done with us yet either. We're supposed to get rain on Tuesday so I think it'll clear it out. Hope you don't have to go into work on Friday. I love Benihana but it's been years since I've been. I don't even know where the closest one is anymore. Yes, it is a time commitment. Sounds like you had a great visit with your daughter! I'm looking forward to that new Christina Lauren and the Beth O'Leary, too. Although, I've seen some mixed reactions on the O'Leary, but I've been in the minority of enjoying books of hers that others haven't liked so I'm hopeful.
ReplyDeleteOur snow from 5-weeks ago was almost gone. I suppose mother nature felt we needed more. BOO! They are saying snow today, tomorrow, and Tuesday. I won't be in three days this week. I feel like O'Leary always has mixed reviews, but I like her books.
Delete"I am under a coastal flooding warning, a winter storm warning, and a blizzard warning."
ReplyDeleteUh...nothing to see here, right? 😮 I hope they aren't causing/won't cause too much disruption! At least you and the kid were able to treat yourselves while she was visiting. That monkey is adorable, but why the heartache?
Just staying in and hoping the power doesn't go out. The monkey was rejected by his mother and the other monkeys were bullying him. It was heartbreaking, but one of the older ones is protecting him now.
DeleteI hope the weather hasn’t been as bad as predicted for you. At least you have some great reads to keep you busy if you are homebound.
ReplyDeleteWishing you a warm reading week
Nope, it's bad out there over a foot and still falling.
DeleteI had been watching Punch, the money too. Poor little thing. Hopefully the storms haven't been as bad as they said.
ReplyDeleteSupposedly, things are looking up for Punch, thank goodness! My heart cannot take it. We got so much snow and they are saying there is another storm brewing for Wed. This winter won't quit.
DeleteThat is A LOT of warnings! I hope you stay safe and warm. I'm glad you got to spend time with your daughter. The food sounds AMAZING.
ReplyDeleteI hope you have a wonderful week, Sam! I'm sooo ready for warmer weather and summer.
There is so much snow. I want to cry, and they are saying there may be more tomorrow. Tears!
DeleteThe NYC visit sounds so fun - good food and a good show! Glad you had a great visit with your daughter! Hope you're all dug out from the weekend storm!
ReplyDeleteIt was good, and the weather was great which is always a plus. They still have not cleared my lot. I am over in the senior center hoping they don't evict me.
DeleteIt sounds like a great visit with your daughter. Glad you got to do so much mother/daughter stuff. I enjoy Benihana as well, you made me hungry. I am jealous that you got the Christina Lauren book, I had to wish for it, which means I won't get it. I guess I will wait until it publishes. I heard about the weather in the east and all the areas that got hit. My daughter is in Nova Scotia and they got walloped as well. I hope it didn't mess up your schedule too much.
ReplyDeleteI have not had much luck with the CLo books, so I was shocked. Very happy though. We got about two feet, and then I think about people further north who hit three. We also didn't lose power, so we were pretty lucky.
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